bute of regard to the exertions and tenderness of his wife: "I have been," fays he, " in prisons frequent; "feized upon by the army, as I was going to discharge my duty in the Houfe of Commons, "and, contrary to priviledg of Parliament, made 66 a prisoner in the Queen's Court; from thence "carried ignominiously to a place under the "Exchequer called Hell, and the next day to "the King's Head in the Strand; after, singled out, (as a fheep to the flaughter,) and removed 66 to St. James's; then fent to Windsor Castle, "and remanded to St. James's againe; laftly "toffed, like a ball, into a strange country, to "Denbigh Castle in North Wales, remote from 66 my relations and interefts. After above three years imprisonment, and thus being changed itt were from veffel to veffel, itt pleased the "Lord to turne my captivity, and to restore me "to the comforts of my poore family again, "And here let me call to mind how much rea"fon I had to be thankful to Him who chafteneth "those whom he loveth, for the great confola❝tion experienced in the dear partner of my 66 captivity. She came to me difguifed in mean apparel, when I had groaned in my bonds feven "months, thinking it the duty of a wife to rifke "all things for the fatisfaction of her husband. "Much difficulty had fhe in comming, and was frequent DD 3 "frequent on the brink of being discovered; "but at length, over mountains and unknown "roads, fometimes with a guide and fometimes "with none, fhe arrived att my prifon; and "fhe feemed, when she discovered herself to me, "to be like the Angell who appeared unto Peter "in like circumftances. She did not, indeed, "bid my prifon-gates fly open, but by her sweete "converse and behaviour fhe made thofe things “feem light which were before heavy, and scarce "to be borne. I must ever acknowledg itt alfo 66 a very great mercy, that being fo long fubject "to fo great a malice, armed with fo great power, "I was not given as a prey to their teeth; and "that after all the indeavours that were used to "finde out matter of charge against me, I came "off with an intire innocency, not only uncondemned, but unaccused." LIEUTENANT-COLONEL JOYCE. LILLY, in the History of his Life and Times, fays, "The next Sunday after Charles the First "was beheaded, Robert Spavin, Secretary to "Oliver Cromwell, invited himself to dine with "me, and brought Anthony Peirfon, and several "others, along with him to dinner; and that "the "the principal discourse at dinner was only, Who "it was that beheaded the King? One faid it was the common hangman; another, Hugh "Peters; others alfo were nominated, but none "concluded. Robert Spavin, so foon as dinner "was done, took me by the hand, and carried 66 me to the fouth window. Thefe are all mif, "taken, faith he; they have not named the man "that did the fact. It was Lieutenant-Colonel Joyce. I was in the room when he fitted him"felf for the work, stood behind him when he "did it, when done went in again with him, "There is no man knows this but my mafter Cromwell, Commiffary Ireton, and myself.→ "Doth not Mr. Rufhworth know it? quoth I, "No; he did not know it, faid Spavin. The "fame thing," adds Lilly, Spavin fince had "often related unto me when we were alone." . Colonel, then Cornet Joyce feized upon the perfon of the King at Holmby; and when his Majesty required him to fhew him his commiffion, Joyce pointed to the foldiers that attended him."Believe me, Sir," replied Charles," your in"structions are written in a very legible charac"ter." The King feeing Lord Fairfax and Cromwell foon afterwards, afked them, Whether they had commiffioned Joyce to remove him to Royston, where the quarters of the army then were? DD 4 " I will not were? They affected to deny it. "believe you," replied Charles, "unless you SIR HENRY SLINGSBY, BART. THIS Gentleman, who was a most decided Royalist, wrote "Commentaries of the Civil "Wars, from 1638 to 1648." They are still in MS. and by the kindness of a learned and ingenious friend, JAMES PETIT ANDREWS, Efq. a few curious extracts from them are permitted to have a place in thefe Volumes. The beginning of the Civil Wars is thus pathetically defcribed by Sir Henry: "The third of January 1639, I went to Bram"ham Houfe, out of curiofity, to fee the training "of the Light Horfe, for which fervice I had fent "two horfes by commandment of the Lieute"nant and Sir Jacob Afhley, who is lately come "down, with special commiffion from the King, "to train and exercise them. These are strange * Sir Henry was one of the Deputy Lieutenants of the County of York, and Member of Parliament for Knaref borough. fpectacles fpectacles to this Nation in this age, that has lived thus long peaceably, without noise of "drum or of fhot, and after we have ftood neuter, and in peace, when all the world be "fides hath been in arms. Our fears proceed from the Scots, who at this time are become "moft warlike, being long experienced in the Swedish and German wars, The cause of દ grievance they pretend is matter of religion. . "I had but a fhort time," adds Sir Henry, "of being a foldier; it did not last above fix "weeks. I like it, as a commendable way of breeding for a Gentleman, if they confort "themselves with fuch as are civil, and if the " quarrel is lawfull. For as idlenefs is the nurfe ❝of all evil, enfeebling the parts both of body "and mind, this employment of a foldier is contrary unto it, and fhall greatly improve "them, by enabling the body for labour, and "the mind for watchfulness; and fo by a con"tempt of all things, (but that employment "they are in,) they fhall not much care how hard they lie, or how hardly they fare." At the defeat of the King's troops near Chester, which Charles faw from one of the towers of that city, Sir Henry exclaims: "Here I do wonder at the admirable temper of the King, whofe conftancy was fuch, that no |